The Future Past tour 2023

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Imo, they may drop these classics for upcoming tour: The Number of the Beast and Hallowed be Thy Name. Iron Maiden and Fear of The Dark will stay.
 
What do you think, is it possible that they won't be playing Days of Future Past?

Yeah, the tour is named after the song, but maybe it's just that, cool song name to tie two albums.

For example there is complitation album From Fear to Eternity. They used From Here to Eternity song name to name an album, but the song didn't feature on the album

Leaving that one out will free space for Stratego or some other song from Senjutsu or other reunion album.
You can't name the tour like that and don't play the song (Maiden always do this). Adrian said he wants to play it live, it was a potential hit single and they always play the short rockers from the Reunion albums live (*TFF album has more shorter songs). Plus it seems the setlist will have quite a few long songs.
DOFP will replace Stratego, I think.

  • Senjutsu may not be played since the tour is not called ''Senjutsu World Tour''.

Btw, CSIT wasn't featured in the 2008 compilation album of the same name either, so it's different.
 
At the moment it seems like their are going to play Alexander, at least their intention and given hints seems to be heading that direction.

But with that there is lost opportunity of suprise. Now fans expectations are really high that Alexander is in the set. You could say, we seem to be certain about Alexander.
But if they would have said next year gonna be Senjutsu tour with some mix from past, we couldn't be so sure about SiT songs.
And then at the concert to experience that feeling -

Oooh, yeah awesome, they are playing Stranger, good lads!

Oh my god, is it really Alexander The Great that I hear, fuck yeah!

So, yeah that suprise element would have been blast. But it's just minor complain about really exciting news and upcoming tour, that we will definetly enjoy.
 
At the moment it seems like their are going to play Alexander, at least their intention and given hints seems to be heading that direction.

But with that there is lost opportunity of suprise. Now fans expectations are really high that Alexander is in the set. You could say, we seem to be certain about Alexander.
But if they would have said next year gonna be Senjutsu tour with some mix from past, we couldn't be so sure about SiT songs.
And then at the concert to experience that feeling -

Oooh, yeah awesome, they are playing Stranger, good lads!

Oh my god, is it really Alexander The Great that I hear, fuck yeah!

So, yeah that suprise element would have been blast. But it's just minor complain about really exciting news and upcoming tour, that we will definetly enjoy.
Somewhere in Time incorporation into setlist attracts ticket sales. There's no way they will not advertise this fact in advance.
 
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At the moment it seems like their are going to play Alexander, at least their intention and given hints seems to be heading that direction.

But with that there is lost opportunity of suprise.
We can't be sure, you know. It's the same as when they tour a new album - we know that they want to (and will) play at least half of the songs on the album. We have to say that (for Maiden) ATG alone is a marketing ''beast''.
 
And considering that an AMOLAD style tour for Senjutsu would not have worked. I would have loved it, but i imagine people like this concept much more.
I would have loved Senjutsu in full album tour (or a traditional album tour), but if that means they finally will play ATG, so be it. One of Maiden's best epics imo. With its concept, this tour should be one of Maiden's best and most special.

As I already said, the tour will not worth the hype if they don't play ATG.
 
The more I think of it, the more I think they shouldn't play CSIT next year.

I just don't want another 2022 Aces High. There are other songs on the album. I just don't want that song to be at 142 BPM and Bruce almost spitting out his guts trying to reach those notes.
 
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So, I've been pondering this for awhile now. Do I think they'll play Alexander the Great?

For: The band has hinted at it for years, specifically Bruce. They're aware of the desire in the fandom to hear it, as we've seen Steve respond to questions about it. There's always a flair for the dramatic with the band. The technical issues preventing it from being played in 1986 (too challenging to reproduce the studio with two guitars) have been resolved by the addition of a third.

Against: All of the above have existed for years, and existed in 2008 during the Somewhere Back in Time tour, which was the first hits tour to specifically reference Somewhere In Time. Iron Maiden is a very conservative band in many things they do, especially around live music. They never change the stage layout, they always play the same handful of hits, they've ended their set with the same, very bad, song, for 45 years+ now. Steve Harris is well known for being as stubborn as a fucking mule.

For: The band has made more aggressive deep cuts of late.

Against: Iron Maiden has never played a song that didn't debut in the album tour.

I lean towards: practiced but doesn't make the cut.
The 2008 tour was for 3 classic albums and the stage set was the one from the Powerslave tour. This time it will be for SIT (and Senjutsu) with a modern version of the 1986 stage set. I mean, it's now or never. This is the perfect moment in time. Now they have three guitars and Bruce always promised that they would play it one day.

And,

Steve: ''...we thought about other options and we’ve decided to revisit Somewhere In Time as that tour didn’t feature in the various retrospective history tours we’ve played over the years. They were based on our 80’s concert videos and sadly we did not film that tour (blame the manager!!). We have had lots of requests from fans over the years for many tracks on it so we are now going to play them, plus of course a few others we know you will like''!
 
This is what I predict they will play. Not what I want them to play

- *Bladerunner intro tape*
- Sea of Madness
- Days of Future Past
- Writing on the Wall
- Stranger in a Strangeland
- Heaven Can Wait
- Hallowed be Thy Name
- Darkest Hour
- Number of the Beast
- Wasted Years
- Lost in a Lost World
- Fear of the Dark
- Hell on Earth

Encore

- *wind, rain and storm effect track*
- Alexander the Great
- Iron Maiden
- Run to the Hills

Notes:

- I would personally take the decision to drop tracks like, Hills, NotB, Iron Maiden (especially Iron Maiden) for more underplayed tracks but I dont see Maiden being brave enough to drop so many staples. I would replace these 3 and really lean into the theme of the tour.

- I would never play Heaven Can Wait but Steve loves it. It is the most played track from SiT. I would play Deja Vu instead

- I would be shocked if they played all 3 of the epics from the end of Senjutsu and I feel like Hell is the most likely by far to be played.

- I know many don't like it (I do) but Darkest Hour does add a ballad and a drop in speed to the set and I feel they will want a slower track to take a breather in the middle somewhere.
Really educated guess, this. Personally I'd put CSIT as opener - better known, mega energetic, and a crowd pleaser
 
Which old songs have a chance to return to the setlist? I think:

2 Minutes To Midnight - a classic and because it was played during the 1986 tour.
The Prisoner - Bruce wants to do it live again... (Children Of The Damned was played fairly recently and I doubt 22 Acacia Avenue).
The Clairvoyant - LOTB 2018 tour poster hints... (I doubt Infinite Dreams or Only The Good Die Young regardless of Steve's comment).
Brave New World - a Reunion era song that would be thematic and totally possible.
maybe a surprise return of Running Free/Sanctuary?

I guess the setlist will not have room for long songs like Phantom and Rime that were played live in 1986. Also, Trooper was not played live during the original SIT tour. This time maybe The Number Of The Beast will not be played.

Btw, Futureal would be so cool and fitting (like Final Frontier and Speed Of Light but more).
The question should be what classic staples will they drop to make room for them? Assuming its a 15 song set 10 taken up by senjutsu/sit that leaves you with

Hallowed / 666 / trooper / maiden / fotd

Can we see any of those 5 left out to make way for some songs you have suggested?
 
Steve: ''...we thought about other options and we’ve decided to revisit Somewhere In Time as that tour didn’t feature in the various retrospective history tours we’ve played over the years. They were based on our 80’s concert videos and sadly we did not film that tour (blame the manager!!). We have had lots of requests from fans over the years for many tracks on it so we are now going to play them, plus of course a few others we know you will like''!

I missed that. It's like a huge, skyscraper-sized hint. They certainly seem to have the intention to play ATG, it remains to be seen if they will.
 
about other options and we’ve decided to revisit Somewhere In Time as that tour didn’t feature in the various retrospective history tours we’ve played over the years. They were based on our 80’s concert videos and sadly we did not film that tour (blame the manager!!). We have had lots of requests from fans over the years for many tracks on it so we are now going to play them, plus of course a few others we know you will like''!
Plenty of others have been requested from that album too. It would be a steve / maiden thing to go add. Stranger, CSIT and sea of mandess expecting that to win people over as well as others we know and like wasted years heaven can wait aha
 
So, I've been pondering this for awhile now. Do I think they'll play Alexander the Great?

For: The band has hinted at it for years, specifically Bruce. They're aware of the desire in the fandom to hear it, as we've seen Steve respond to questions about it. There's always a flair for the dramatic with the band. The technical issues preventing it from being played in 1986 (too challenging to reproduce the studio with two guitars) have been resolved by the addition of a third.

Against: All of the above have existed for years, and existed in 2008 during the Somewhere Back in Time tour, which was the first hits tour to specifically reference Somewhere In Time. Iron Maiden is a very conservative band in many things they do, especially around live music. They never change the stage layout, they always play the same handful of hits, they've ended their set with the same, very bad, song, for 45 years+ now. Steve Harris is well known for being as stubborn as a fucking mule.

For: The band has made more aggressive deep cuts of late.

Against: Iron Maiden has never played a song that didn't debut in the album tour.

I lean towards: practiced but doesn't make the cut.
I like this take. They’ve definitely been gearing toward breaking the unwritten rule of unplayed songs remain unplayed: I didn’t expect they would ever play Flight of Icarus or Blaze eta material again. Their setlists have been more adventurous on the whole. If there was a time to do Alex, this is it.

I do think it is misguided to take Alex as a given though. The only givens are Stranger in a Strange Land (because of the trailer) and Wasted Years imo. Remember when we all assumed they would play Infinite Dreams and Heaven Can Wait on the maiden England tour? There are many songs on Somewhere In Time that folks have been requesting for years besides Alex, a lot of people just want to see more representation from that album.

The technical issues aren’t with lack of guitars, you can do Alex with two guitars, the problem is that the song was cobbled together in the studio. There are time signature changes and weird rhythm hits in the instrumental that are beyond what Maiden usually includes in a song. They’ve fumbled far easier rhythms live, I have a hard time seeing Alex make the cut for that reason alone.
 
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